Safety-catch for jewelry.



TIF. MURPHYl SAFETY CATCH FOR JEWELRY. APPLICATION. FILED FEB. 28. 1917'.

Patented Apr. 15', A1919.

IIIIIIHIIJJ L UIIHHU H52; Fiji.

s 36 27 36 se' r, s 2s LA o 37 l /za A TTOHNEYS THOMAS E; MURPHY, or UrIoA, NEW YORK.

To all /wwm it may concern?. Y

-Be itknown thatfLTvHoMAs F. MURPHY,

of Utica, in thecountyof. Oneida and State i of New York, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Safetyatches for Jewelry; andil.` do hereby declare that the following is `a full, clear, and exact idescription thereof, which will enableothers Vskilledin `.the art to "which it Aappertains toA make and use the same, reference beingrhad to the accompanying drawings, andto the reference numerals marked thereon, `which forinpart of tliisspecication. l

lviy present invention@ relates to safety catches for pin tongs of jewelry;l

The -purpose of myfinvention is to pro` ride anovel and improved form of safetyv pin tongs of jewelryand the catch for the like.

In the making of jewelry such as pins, class pins, brooches and "the like where a pin tong is hinged at one end tothe pin and itsfree end or point is detachably secured to a keeper, -itv has been a serious problem to provide an" efficient safety catch which would prevent the accidental disen- Y provide asafetyl catch wherein the keeper `and-the movable part are of such form and :cooperate `in such manner that the movable `part maybe readilyattached tothe keeper gagement ofthe pin fromthe keeper. VThe small sizeof the safety catch hasbeen oneV obstacle in providing a practical `and reliable catch." Inasmuch as Lmany of the class pins towliich the safety catch is toV lheapplied are less than -halfan inch indianietei. .it will be seen that thesafety catch `must be very small and oftenl-is required to be' less than a sixteenth and even `less than: a-

thirty-'second ofaninch in width. On acpcount of this extremely small size of the device many forms of mechanism `which would be practical*on` a lai'ger'article are not practical and not-reliablefor the purvpose in hand.

Another serious `obstacle in providing a safety catch is the fact that thesev catches in practice have to be made separately from the pin -or other articlel of jewelry by the manufacturer and areafterward aiiiXed to the 'separate pins by the retail or Vrepair jeweler. The usual and proper way to fas`- ten the safety catch to they` body of the pin is by the hard solderingprocess. During such process of hard soldering the adjacent part of the body of the pinand thesafetyV j catch have to bebrought to avery high temperature. This high` temperature foperates to take the temper out of all parts of the catch thus preventing the use of any i fAFETY-CATCHEOR JEWELRY.

i i Specification-of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 15, 191e.

Application filed FebruaryZS, 1917. Serial No. 151,576.

forms of mechanism that require the 4metal to tempered.

otherwise Vchange the shape `and fit of parts so that where any mechanism requiring one part to ft closely orcoperate closely with another part is used such adjustment is lost vduring the soldering process, resulting in 'the device being entirelyspoiled or requiring so much hand-work and adjustment to fbe expended upon the article astoA render the device expensive and unreliable. The heat of the solderingV process is especially `disastrous where a pivoted member is a l to provide a safety catch which will obviate the disadvantages above named and at the i same time provide an economical and thoroughly practical and eiiicient safety catch and onewhich may be readily aiixed to the pin or `other article of jewelry without any of the disadvantages above named.

A further purpose of my invention is to Furthermore this high emperature operates to distort, warp and after the keeper has been afliXed to the body of the pin and so that the said movable part may be attached to the keeper by a very simple' operation which may be properly Vdone by even an inexperienced operator rapidly and without theuse of special tools.

In other words,` the movable part is an openended loop of such construction that it is attached to the keeper by the simple act of `temporarily expanding; the loop which may out impairingA the eiiiciency of either part Aor 4the coperation of said parts.

Another object Vof my invention is to provide a safety catch of such form that it may beapplied-to a considerable variety of forms of keepers with equal eiiiciency and particularly to provide a form of safety of the pin 20. The top of the keeper has? a recess 27 therein of such size and so lo` catch that is adapted to be-used with either a receiver having its pin tong receiving recess in its top or a keeper having its -receiving recess in its side.

Further purposes and advantages of my invention will appear from the specification and drawings herein..

Figure 1 is a side elevation on an enlarged scale of a clasp pin embodying my invention with the pin tong partly open.

Fig. 2. is a similar side view but with the pin tong in closed position but with the safety catch still in open position.

Fig. 3 is a similar view" showing the pin tong and safety catehiboth closed.

Figs. 4,75 and 6 are back views of said pin with its parts in the position shown respectively in Figs. 1, 2` andV 3.

Figs. 7, 8, 9 and 10 are respectively side,

exterior face.. interior face and top viewsy on a still further enlarged scale ofthe keeper.

Fig. 11 is a side view on a similar scale of the movable part or spring loop.

Fig. 12 is asimilar view of another forni of the spring loop.

Fig. 13 is a back view of a pin having a hook-shaped keeper embodying my invention.

Fig. 14 is a side view on an enlarged scale of the keepersh'own in Fig. 13. l

Fig. 15 is a perspective view of the keeper and loop ofthe form ofiny invention shown in Figs. 13 and 14.

Referring to the drawings in a more particular description, it will be seen that I have shown my safety catch appliedto the vback or-rear surface of the body 20 `cfa `pin orother form of jewelry having-the usual pair of upwardly extending ears 21 between which one end of the pin .tong .22 is fastened by the usual lpivot 23 leavingA the point.

end 241: ofthe pintong' free to be inserted through the clothing in the usual way and then fastened to the keeper.

Referring 'now to theY form of my invention shown in Figs. 1 to` 11 inclusive, it will be seen that. the safety catch' ofmy invention comprises a keeper 25 anda spring loop 26. Thekeeper 25 has its bottom surface se,- cured in any desired way,v but usually by a hard soldering process to the back surface wardly-extending recesses 2S adapted to receive the inturned pintles29 of the spring loop 26. Preferably the opposite sides of the keeper will be provided with grooves.V

f 30 extending from the pintle recesses 28 to the top of the keeper. Preferably also the top of the keeper will have a transverselying1 position? extending groove 3l connecting the grooves 30 on the opposite sides of the keeper and extending across thetop of the keeper except that it is of course interrupted where the `deeper recess 27 cuts across the top of the keeper in the opposite direction. p

The spring loop-26 is formed off any suitable material thatwill be somewhat springy or resilient and which will retain such resiliency and be strong anddurablefor the work in hand as well preferably also as being similar in appearance tothe other metal ofthe piece of jewelry so as not to detract from the appearance of the article. The spring loop 26 is formed as plainly indicated in the-.drawings to be generally U- shaped in form.` with the bow portion 32 and opposite sides or.V leg portions 33 at the endsvof which are formed finturned and oppositely dispo-sed pintles 29. The said loop is attached tothe keeper by temporarily springing the sides of the loop apart until the pintle pointslare lopposite thepiintle re.- cesses 2S when .the springloop isallowed to again contract or spring back into normal shape. The spring loop 256 andkeeper 25 are-so shaped in proportion Ato eachother that the loop 26 with its pintles 29 in the keeper recesses28 is pivotallyniounted upon the keeper and may be moved from the open position shown in Figs. 1. andv et to the closed position shown iii- .Figs 3 and. G'.

The safety catch is of such proportion and so located uponthel pin 20. that when the loop 2G is moved from open to closed? posi-tion Ithe pin tong canne-tbe moved away from the keeper 25 until the safetycatch: .llO

loop 26 is swung back fromiclosedlor lock-` buitable means are ioO provided whereby the l i spring loop. 226 strongly tends to 'reina-inlin` l closed or locked position.4 Oneofthemeans I prefer to use for this purpose.` are the grooves` 30 on opposite` sidesoftheekeeper in linewith the closed position oftherloopA so that when the loop.hascome to. closed vposition it will contractsufficiently to have its sides 33 fit intosaid grooves 30 with a de cided locking action :so-that no. ordinary handling of the pin. or accidental moving.` of the pin:` will move: theyspring loop .out` from itsr closed-position. The groove 31 on the top` of .the keeper. also assists `in theA sameA way in retaining the` loop. in closed position...

Of course the half or part of the receiver from. the groove 30 toward its 'outerface is wider 4andalso preferably higher than the part ofthe keeper inclosed within the loop when the loop isin locking.ipositionvand. so

operates to positively: prevent ythe spring' loop from freely swinging back to open `-po sition. ..Thezwide parts. ofthis halfk of the keeperare lindicated by the..num'erals @34:

its sides-33 slightly apart. The shoulders 35 atthe top ofithishalf of the keeper are prefe` `erably. of suchfLhei'ght assto retard-thexbow ofthe loop asfitpasses .over said shoulders thus aidingV to keep the Aloop inzclosed posimoving i to `opened position may`` be effected ingthe decided grooves'30and `31 inthe sides and top of thekeeperas shown.4

lVhileit islobviousthat'the spring loop might be allowed to pass entirely over the keeper and so 'extend toward fthe: fears 21, such construction is inconvenient in that `it would require the user to see that the spring loop was first turned outward to the position shown in -Fig. 1 before attempting to lock the pin. I prefer, therefore, to positively prevent the spring loop from being moved farther inward than closed position. This is accomplished by high or wide spots such as shoulders 36 on the top of the keeper or shoulders 37 on the side of the keeper or preferably as shown by having both sets of shoulders. With the safety catch so constructed the spring loop will have to be moved to open position in order to remove the pin from the clothing and then the slight spring tension of the loop against the keeper will ordinarily hold the loop in open or unlocked position ready for the next locking operation.

For greater convenience in operation the loop 26 may be provided with an outwardly projecting thumb or linger clip 38 as shown in Fig. 11 or such linger clip may be formed by having a decided kink 39 formed in the loop at that point as shown in Fig. 12.

Referring now to the modification of my invention as shown in Figs. 13 to 15 inclusive, it will be seen that this retains the spring loop and its spring function as herein shown but that the keeper 40 is of the common hook-keeper formation having an opening L11 at one side with a pin-receiving recess 42 in which the pin tong rests while it is held from being accidentally moved therefrom by reason of the spring loop 26 now closing the opening 41. The spring loop 26 is of the same construction as already described and is pivoted to the keeper 40 as already described with reference to the keeper 25 and 2 shoulder 3?a l lar to shoulders 34,35, 36 and 37 already de-` ,--which, arereally: shoulders lpastwhich the .-1

spring loop can-be swung bysuiicient power i being, applied* to :the spring loopv to: spring* scribed. Y i y i It will now be obvious that the safety catch I have shown permits of thekeeper 25 or 40 being securely fastened by even a hard-soldering .process to the body 20 of a pin without injuring any movingor sliding part for the reason 4that the loop 25 `is not at that time in' place `upon the keeperand the heat or tion. -It will beobvious` that the holding of thel loop in locked :positionV and against its f other steps necessary to fasten the keeper to the pindo not `affect ,the shape, holes, recesses or shoulders of the keeper. After the keeper i is thus `fastened upon the pin the pin may be subjected to any; further process of manufacture such as that of enameling without injuriously affecting the keeper. After the pin is` otherwise entirely completed the spring loop 26 is attached to the keeper in an obvious manner by simply.` springing the sides of the spring loopapart which generally will be done by forcing them gently down in the 4grooves 30 until the pintles 29 `spring into the pintle recesses 28.

It will be obvious that this may be done by unskilled operators such as boys or girls. It will further be seen that these sprino' loops may be readily detached from theilieeper if the loop needs replacement or if the rest of the pin needs any repairing work done thereupon which will involve the use of high temperature.

It will be seen that in the form of my invention as shown in Figs. 13 to 15 the keeper 4 0 bears the pull or strain of holding the pin tong to the pin and the spring loop 26 simply prevents the lateral displacement of the pin tong from the keeper. This form of my `invention is particularly useful when the pin is of such value as to make it inadvisable to rely entirely upon. the spring loop for the niilain function of holding the pin tong upon t e pin.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A safety catch for pin tongs of articles of jewelry comprising a keeper having oppositely disposed pintle recesses and guiding grooves leading to said recesses, combined with a locking spring loop having inturned ends forming pintles adapted to enter said recesses, said loop being thus adapted to be manually applied to said keeper and being pivotally mounted so that it may be turned to hold or release the pin tong.

2. A safety catch for pin tongs of articles of jewelry comprising a keeper having a main recess to receive a pin tong, and having pintle recesses near the base of its sides, combined with a Ushaped spring loop having its ends inturned to form oppositely disposed pintles fitting said pintle recesses of the keeper and adapted to retain the pin tong in the said mainreeess and tobe turnedbaok to KVuncover` the said main-recess to allow the pin tongto` be removed therefrom, saidloop .being adaptedltof be .afiixed to the keeper by temporarlly springing'thei loop` apart and entering `the pintles into the said pintle recesses ofthe keeper; l l A 8. A safetycatch for pin tongs of artieles of jewelry comprising a keeper having a main recess toreceive alpin tong, and having pintle recessesnearV the baseof its sides, cornbined with aUeshaped spring loop having its ends inturned to4 fornr oppositely disposed pintles fitting said pintler` recesses of the keeper and adapted to retain the pin tong in` theA said lnain `recess and to loe-turned backto'luncover the sald lnainrecess to alloT the pin` tong: to be removed therefrom, said keeper having guiding grooves extending to, said pintle recesses to direct sald pintles into said4 recesses, said keeper being. provided With means for retainingV said spring loop in closed position, and said loop beingadapted to, be aixedto the keeper by temporarily Copies of this' patent may be obtained` for 1 scanners springingr .the loop' apart and entering the pintlesinto: the'vsai-d' pin-tiev recesses oi Vthe keeper.`

4i f A safety catchV for" pin tongs-off artelesi of jewelry comprising af Akeeper havingra 11i-ain recess tofreceive apin: tong'andhafving pintle recesses near the base :of its'. sides, com

bined. with al Usshap'edspringloop having its endsinturned to ornr oppositely disposedf1V pintlesV fitting said; pintle recessesV o the keeper and adapted to,retainlthezpinltong:in

the said main recess andtoloef turned "back to uncover the said main reeessto allow the pinA v tong-tope removedtherefrom, said keeper' having-f guiding grooves! exten'dingfv to: said pintle recessesto direct i said Ipintl'es into .said

recesses,| said;v keeper being providedT 'with means for. retaining saidf spring.loop@V in closed position, and said; keeper also-having:

fiveV cents each, byaddressingythefCommissioner of Patents.l Washingtomnc. l C 1 

